By Jon Clifford

| Special to The Tribune

Sandy • It’s been 10 years, but the memories and the hurt are still vivid.

Ryan Nemelka saw the disappointment on the faces of his brother Nick Howard and his Jordan teammates after they fell one game short of a basketball state championship.

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At a glance

Jordan’s Ryan Nemelka

Jordan senior guard Ryan Nemelka has led the team in scoring two seasons and entered the week 14th in Class 5A in scoring at 14.2 points per game.

Nemelka, whose brother lost in the state title game to Alta in 2003, set a goal in the fourth grade to play in the state tournament.

Coach Rob Geertsen calls Nemelka the hardest-working player on the team, “by far. There’s not even a close second.”

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"I remember seeing him cry on the court," said Nemelka, now a senior at Jordan. "And me and the fans were crying as well."

It was then Nemelka made it his goal to play in the season-ending tournament.

But Jordan’s loss at Copper Hills last week was the Beetdiggers’ fifth in six games and essentially ended Nemelka’s hope of playing in the tournament.

"I’ve been dreaming about making the tournament since the fourth grade," said Nemelka, a shooting guard and small forward. "It’s disappointing. I never imagined this situation happening."

Not making the postseason for a second consecutive season seemed improbable a month ago. The Beetdiggers started the season 4-0 and were 10-4 after a victory at Cottonwood on Jan. 20.

But four consecutive losses sent Jordan tumbling down the Region 3 standings, and the loss at Copper Hills last week put Jordan a game behind the Grizzlies for the region’s final playoff spot.

In order to qualify for a play-in game, Jordan needed to win at West Jordan — the state’s top-ranked team — and have Cottonwood (0-9 in region) win at Copper Hills.

"He and I were texting quite a bit Friday night. He took that loss pretty hard," Jordan coach Rob Geertsen said Saturday. "He and I vowed to give it everything we have [this week] and see what happens."

It’s a cruel end for Nemelka, who has started all 42 games on varsity and has been the Beetdiggers’ top scorer each of the past two seasons. He entered the week averaging 14.2 points per game and had a season-best 34 points earlier this season at Hillcrest.

Nemelka’s 46 3-pointers are also a team high, and he entered the week with 100 3-pointers in his career. Last season, he scored 21 points in his first varsity start and set a school record with nine 3-pointers in a game against Lake Worth Christian in Florida.

Geertsen called Nemelka the hardest-working player on the team — in and out of season.

"He spent the offseason working so hard on his shooting and off the dribble shooting," Geertsen said. "Whenever we do sprints or drills in practice, he’s always going full speed. And he stays after practice every day to put in extra work."

Geertsen said the Beetdiggers’ late-season slide was partly due to the fact that the team didn’t get better as the season progressed. It’s hard to imagine, considering the roster includes seven seniors, and four of them are the team’s top scorers.

"Practice wasn’t as good as it should have been," Nemelka said. "Our work ethic seemed to get worse over the season and I don’t know why. We were a heck of a team. … I’m not sure exactly what happened."

Nemelka next will set his sites on a new goal — following his brother’s path and playing at Dixie State. Nemelka hasn’t made a decision on where he will play next year, but it will likely be at a junior college.

"Dixie’s my dream school," Nemelka said, "so I’m working toward that."